Improvement in machines for thrashing flax



S. A. CLEMENS.

Hac-kling Machine.

Patented Nov. 6, 1866.

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STILLMAN A. CLEMENS, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

IMPROVEMENT IN MACHINES FOR THRASHING FLAX.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 59, 360, dated November6, 1866.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, STILLMAN A. OLEMENs, of Chicago, Cook county,Illinois, have invented a new and useful Machine for Removing Seed-Endsfrom Straight Flax-Straw, and Thrashing and Winnowing Flaxseed; and I dodeclare the following to be aful-l,clear, and exact description of thesame, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making part ofthis specification, in which- Figure lis a vertical longitudinalsection. Fig. 2 is a vertical crosssection, and Figs. 3 and 4 are sideelevations.

Like letters refer to like parts in all the gures.

My said invention consists in mechanical devices combined in a machine,by which the seed-bolls and seed-ends of straight dax-straw aresimultaneously removed from the iiaxstalks, and the seed-boils crushedand the flaxseed winnowed.

In the accompanying drawings, ais theframe of the machine; b is atoothed cylinder, made to revolve at high speed in the direction of itsarrow.

c c are a pair of pressure crushing-rollers set in their bearings sothat their circumferences shall not quite touch each other, (to avoidcrushing iiaxseed passing between them,) and the roller c', havingnarrow, shallow channels or, grooves cut lengthwise in its surface togive adhesion to the material passing between the rollers.

Motion is given to c in the direction of the arrow by a band. (l,passing over a grooved pulley, e, on the shaft of b, and overa groovedpulley, e', on the shaft of c. l

o and c are geared together by the spurwheels ff', the latter'of whichis smaller than the former, giving greater surface-speed to c than to c,for the purpose of producing a drawing and rolling action upon theseed-boils passing between them, and thus aiding in opening them and`freeing the seed as the bolls are crushed.

g g are chute-sides for directing the material thrown from b down uponand between the crushing-rollers c c.

h is a sieve-shoe, with a horizontal or inclined screen or sieve, t',and an inclined screen, k, (the latter ner thanthe former,) which issuspended loosely near one end by a rod, l,

passing through its sides, which is supported at its ends in the framea. The other end of the sieve-shoe rests on a cross-piece of the framea, and lis `secured to it loosely by the pin m.

A horizontally vibrating and shaking motion is given to one of thesieve-shoe ends by an arm, n, attached to it, which, by the spring o, ismade to bear against a prism, @formed on the end of the shaft of o'.

q is afan-blower for winnowing the iaxsee( attached to one end of theshaft of b. The airblast formed by it is conducted down a trunk,

i", and directed horizont-ally and lengthwise through the sieve-shoe h,passing both above and below the screen t'. f

s is acover to the cylinder b, curved and set to clear the points of itsteeth, and resting on and secured to the top of the sides of themachine. Y

The partitions t tare set vertically at right angles to the axis of b,and attached to the cover s, and resting on and secured to thecross-pieces of the frame. They pass over the upper half of the cylinderb and between its teeth, their lower edges clearing the surface ot" thecylinder, thus dividing the upper surface of the cylinder into threesections for the purpose of forming three separate places for feedingthe flax to the machine, so that three workmen can feed to the samemachine at one and the same time, one on one side and two on the otherside. For this purpose, also, there is one open space, u, formed in thecover at one side of the machine, (shown in Fig. 3,) which is an openingto the middle section of the cylinder, formed bythe partitions tt,- andalso there are two similar spaces, u u", formed in the cover on theother side of the machine, (shown in Fig. 4,) which are openings to theend sections formed by the partitions t t.

A breast, o, on which the iiax rests while held to the action of thecylinder, is secured to the cover, and extends across and above thefeed-space u and breasts o o, for the same' purpose as the breast c, andformed ofthe upper part of a cross-piece ofthe frame a, extend acrossand below the feed-spaces u' and u, on the opposite side of the machinefrom fv.

In operating the machine suitable motion is given to the cylinder b bymotive power applied to its shaft, which, by the connections beforedescribed, drives the crushing-rollers c and c', the fan q, and shakesthe sieve-shoe h.

Small bundles of straight flax are taken by their butt-ends in the handsof workmen, and the seed-ends of the bundles are thrust into thefeed-spaces u u u, so that the teeth of the cylinder b shall penetratethe ends of the bundles suiciently to reach the seed-bolls and theseed-ends and branches of the dax-stalks. The bundles of flax are heldto the action of the cylinder-teeth only long enough for them to whipand beat oli' the seed-bolls and seed-ends, which are thrown down anddirected by the chute-sides g g upon and between the crushin g-rollers cc', which last draw the seed-ends and seed-bolls between them, crushingand opening the seed-bolls and freeing the iiaxseed from them g and thematerial passing from the crushing-rollers falls upon the screen t' ofthe sieve l1., and the air-blast from the trunk r bears away, throughthe open rear end of the sieve,

the hulls of the bolls and seed-ends and light refuse material, whilethe iiaxseed, aided by the shaking and vibrating of the sieveshoe,'falls down through the holes in the screen t', and is received upon thefiner screen 7c, and, by its shaking and vibrating motion and itsinclination, the ilaxseed moves down the inclined plane of the screen,and is winnowed by the air-blast from T, and is finally discharged fromthe lower end of the screens. The refuse seeds and heavy matter mixedwith the llaxseed is separated from it by escaping down through theholes in the screen It, which are too small for the tlaxseed to passthrough.

Certain modifications of the devices described may be used, viz

First. The cylinder b may be divided by partitions into more or lessfeed-sections than those represented, and the feed spaces or openingsmay be either on one or both sides of the machine, and the partitionsmay be dispensed with when the feed-spaces are only on .one side of themachine.

Second. The crushing-rollers may both bey channeled lengthwise, and bothmay be run at the same speed.

Third. But one crushing-roller, c', may be used, and in the place of theother roller, c, a series of spring-plates, fw, (represented in Fig. 2by dotted lines,) may be used, which are fastened at one end to thesupport x, and which near their other ends bear against the surface of csufficiently to crush the seedbolls as they are carried between thespring-plates and the roller c. In this case the rollero maybe driven bya cross-band passing over the pulley c on the shaft of b and over apulley on the shaft of c.

Fourth. The sieve-'shoe h may be shaken either by lateral orlongitudinal movement of the entire shoe, or by both movements combined,and it may be supported for these purposes in other ways than as shown.

Fifth.l A concave, y, to cylinder b may be used, (represented in Fig. 2by red-ink lines,)

which is of the ordinary kind and attached to y the" frame of themachine underneath the cylinder, having below it the chute-sides z z',for conducting the material falling between the concave bars y y to andbetween the rollers c c. When the concave is used the part of the framet c is removed to admit of the material carried over the concave beingthrown out from the side ofthe machine.

By the described use of the concave the straw removed from the bundlesof flax by the teeth of cylinder b will be separated from the seed andseed-bolls, and be thrown out at one side of the machine, while only theseed and seed-bolls and chaff will pass down through the concave barsand through the crushingrollers, thus effecting better action ofthecrushing-rollers on the seed-bolls and of the winnowing apparatus incleaning the seed.

Sixth. The winnowin g attachment in the described combination, or boththe winnowing attachment and the concave attachment, may be dispensedwith and the remainder of the combination be used only for thrashing''the flax.

I claim as new and of myinvention- 1. The combination of the toothedcylinder b with crushing-rollers c and c, or their equivalents,substantially as described, and for the purposes set forth.

2. The combination of cylinder b and orushing-rollers c c with thevibrating sieve-shoe h, fan q, and air-trunk r, substantially asdescribed, and for the purposes set forth. 3. The crushing device,consisting of roller c and spring-plates w, substantially as described,and for the purposes set forth.

4. A concave, y, combined with the described machine, substantially asdescribed, and for the purposes set forth.

STILLMAN A. CLEMENS. Attest:

MELVILLE GLEMENs, IsAIAH F. Hov'r.

